Mercedes Benz

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

Zandvoort, Netherlands, Jul 13, 2008

§ Bruno Spengler (Mercedes-Benz Bank AMG C-Class) finished fifth in the sixth round of the 2008 DTM in Zandvoort, Netherlands and was the best Mercedes-Benz driver. After 38 laps, he came home 21.9sec behind winner Mattias Ekström (Audi).
§ Jamie Green (Salzgitter AMG Mercedes C-Class), winner of the Norisring race two weeks ago, ended up sixth ahead of Paul Di Resta (AMG Mercedes C-Class); Bernd Schneider (Genuine Parts AMG Mercedes C-Class) finished ninth.
§ After six out of 11 races, Mercedes-Benz and Audi are tied with three victories each. Jamie Green, winner of two races this season, is now third overall with 34 points, six points behind leader Timo Scheider (Audi). Paul Di Resta (AMG Mercedes C-Class) is fourth with 29 points ahead of Bruno Spengler on 26 points.
§ The results of the other C-Classe drivers: Gary Paffett (stern AMG Mercedes C-Class) was the best driver with a last year’s car and finished 11th. Ralf Schumacher (Trilux AMG Mercedes C-Class) came home 12th and achieved his second best DTM result after finishing 10th in Oschersleben in May. Mathias Lauda (Pixum AMG Mercedes C-Class) ended up 13th ahead of Maro Engel (JungeSterne AMG Mercedes C-Class) and Susie Stoddart (TV Spielfilm AMG Mercedes C-Class).
§ A total of 48,000 spectators attended the sixth round of the 2008 DTM in Zandvoort during the weekend.

The start: Jamie Green started fourth on the grid ahead of Bruno Spengler; Paul Di Resta had qualified seventh. Spengler was fifth after the opening lap ahead of Di Resta; Green dropped to seventh place.
Lap 10: Bruno Spengler, Jamie Green, Gary Paffett, Maro Engel and Susie Stoddart came in for their respective first pit stops. Paul Di Resta, Bernd Schneider, Mathias Lauda and Ralf Schumacher followed one lap later.
Lap 12: All drivers had completed their first mandatory stops. Bruno Spengler was fifth; Jamie Green improved by one position to sixth place ahead of Paul Di Resta. Bernd Schneider was 11th.
Lap 15: Second pit stops of Bruno Spengler, Maro Engel and Ralf Schumacher. One lap later, Jamie Green pitted for the second time.
Lap 17: Paul Di Resta came in for his second pit stop. Due to a problem fixing the right rear wheel because of a damaged thread which caused the wheel nut to cant, he lost about six seconds. Also Gary Paffett pitted for the second time.
Lap 18: Ralf Schumacher who had started 19th overtook his team mate Maro Engel and moved up to 15th place.
Lap 19: Second pit stop of Bernd Schneider. Susie Stoddart followed one lap later.
Lap 22: Mathias Lauda was the last C-Class driver to complete his second pit stop.
Lap 28: After the second round of pit stops, Bruno Spengler was fifth ahead of Jamie Green and Paul Di Resta. Bernd Schneider was ninth. Gary Paffett was the best driver with a 2007 C-Class in 12th place ahead of Ralf Schumacher.
Lap 37: Bernd Schneider overtook Mike Rockenfeller (Audi), but was passed by Markus Winkelhock (Audi) at the same time.
Finish (lap 38): Bruno Spengler came home fifth ahead of Jamie Green and Paul Di Resta; Bernd Schneider followed in ninth position. Gary Paffett finished 11th and was the best driver with a 2007 C-Class ahead of Ralf Schumacher who claimed his second best DTM result after finishing 10th in the second round in Oschersleben in May.

Comments

Bruno Spengler (2008 Mercedes-Benz Bank AMG C-Class), fifth: “A very tough race. The Audis were faster today and although I got the maximum out of the car and myself, a better result was not possible. There are still five races ahead of us with an optimum of 50 points to be won. Nothing is decided yet.”

Jamie Green (2008 Salzgitter AMG Mercedes C-Class), sixth: “Unfortunately I lost three positions at the start and on this track I was not able to catch up. At least I scored three points and in the overall ranking I am still in touch with the leader. Now let’s do better at the Nürburgring.”

Paul Di Resta (2008 AMG Mercedes C-Class), seventh: “I had to push hard to keep in touch. During my second pit stop I lost a bit of time and afterwards I was not able to improve.”

Bernd Schneider (2008 Genuine Parts AMG Mercedes C-Class), ninth: “12th on the grid was of course not ideal and though I had a good car it was a difficult race for me. Towards the end I put Mike Rockenfeller under pressure and on the penultimate lap I was on the better line. Obviously he did not see me and hit me. That’s why Markus Winkelhock was able to pass the two of us.”

Gary Paffett (2007 stern AMG Mercedes C-Class), 11th: “I lost some time during my first pit stop, but even without that it was hard to match the others’ speed with a last year’s car. A better result than 11th was just not possible.”

Ralf Schumacher (2007 Trilux AMG Mercedes C-Class), 12th: “From 19th on the grid to 12th at the finish is quite reasonable. On the track and during the pit stops I managed to overtake a couple of other cars. I thank my team for their good strategy. It was again a race in which I learnt a lot.”

Mathias Lauda (2007 Pixum AMG Mercedes C-Class), 13th: “Today Ralf was faster and I had to let him go. Next time I will to do better.”

Maro Engel (2007 JungeSterne AMG Mercedes C-Class), 14th: “We knew already after yesterday’s qualifying that it would be a difficult race. We put this weekend behind us and focus on the Nürburgring in two weeks time.”

Susie Stoddart (2007 TV-Spielfilm AMG Mercedes C-Class), 15th: “I had a good start and gained some positions. During my first pit stop I lost time and afterwards I drove alone almost all the time. I now look forward to the Nürburgring because the track suits me better.”

Norbert Haug, Vice President Mercedes-Benz Motorsport: “Congratulations to Abt-Audi and Mattias Ekström, they were stronger today and after our three recent victories in a row they deserved to win. Our weight handicap of 10 kilograms is not the only explanation for this. But with Jamie Green, Paul Di Resta and Bruno Spengler we still have three drivers among the top five who all have realistic chances for the championship. They are all within 14 points. In two weeks time we will continue at the Nürburgring.”


Copyright © 2008, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.